I'm a huge Bezic fan. I think the Olympics coverage is great because her commentary is enlightening and enthusiastic. She explains technical aspects very well and clearly. As a nonskater, I enjoy her getting into the meat of the elements. Same as Hamilton. These two are great together.

Am I only one who winces whenever Dick opens his mouth? During the live commentary, he's anything but eloquent. He trips over his words. He repeats his words. He mis-calls jumps way too often. I really think he could use a few public speaking/speech lessons. I know he brings some pedigree and maturity (and I mean that in the most euphemistic way possible :-)) to the commentary booth, but come on, people. -2 GOE. Public speakers, especially ones as high profile as those at the Olympics, should at least be able to speak in full, coherent, grammatically correct sentences. In that respect, Dick speaks like an elementary school child. I don't mean to sound harsh, but it's a big peeve of mine.

Bezic

I get the feeling they are not compatible types for this type of broadcasting.

Sandra reminds me of my exwife who would never agree with anyone even when anyone is trying to agree with her. It's that verbal dominatrix which can stop conversation instantly and is uncontrollable.

Dick was Dick and using his standard schtick. (that almost seems like porno). Harmless, when he was happy to see I&B complete the 3A throw but there was Sandra interrupting to change the subject. Oh well...... did Scott have anything to say about her?

Hammond, I really didn't notice. He must have been all right, if not, a complete bore.

Seems to me, to be an Unholy Triumvirate.

Joe

Excellent comments, Joe. I'm sorry to hear that Bezic reminds you of your former wife. That is, my sympathies that you were married to somone with that type of personality! Ugh.

That trio is totally mismatched, incompatible, and non-harmonious. :banging:

I disagree with those 3, Scott Hamilton just yells because he gets too excited.
I love Dick Button - I also wish we had Terry Gannon or Al Trautwig. As for the women, maybe Nancy Kerrigan can join the ranks next time around. I don't really notice Sandra Bezick, but a lot of people seem to dislike her. The other guy I didn't notice at all, I was too happy to be hearing Dick Button to care.

Tom Hammond.........useless. I just don't like his voice. I thought Verne Lundquist was awesome!

Dick Button.......well, he was Dick Button, LOL. He doesn't come across as negative, but I'm probably just used to him after all of these years. I appreciate his comments....and negative or positive, they are usually right.

Sandra Bezic........I appreciate her knowledge and I enjoy WHAT she has to say.......it's just that she LOOKS like she'd rather be anywhere but there.....she looks like she's got a pole up her butt and someone should tell her a smile and a little animation goes a long way!!!!!!

Can't wait for Scott to start.........yeah, he can get a bit excited, but that's OK.

Tom Hammond.........useless. I just don't like his voice. I thought Verne Lundquist was awesome!

Dick Button.......well, he was Dick Button, LOL. He doesn't come across as negative, but I'm probably just used to him after all of these years. I appreciate his comments....and negative or positive, they are usually right.

Sandra Bezic........I appreciate her knowledge and I enjoy WHAT she has to say.......it's just that she LOOKS like she'd rather be anywhere but there.....she looks like she's got a pole up her butt and someone should tell her a smile and a little animation goes a long way!!!!!!

Can't wait for Scott to start.........yeah, he can get a bit excited, but that's OK.

I did not realize until tonight, how much Sandra Bezic drives me crazy!
Who were the guys on Eurosport?
They were good.
Sandra made some comments tonight, I can't remember what, but since I listened to the audio on eurosport this afternoon, I knew the outcome...so I caught it a few times....she was way wrong on a few of her predictions.

I love Tracey WIlson- she's so knowledgeable and manages to someone speak demurely as opposed to blabbering over the music. Plus she's calm.

I too think Nancy would be a good pick- maybe not the best speaker in the bunch but when she did Lifetime coverage I was really pleasantly surprised by how good she was at pointing out things about the tech elements and program construction.

Dick is Dick- I like him but he needs a foil (which Gannon has become adept at).

Can take or leave Hamilton but he pissed me off mightily in '02.

Bezic was a great choreographer but I really dislike her as a commentator- always seems to be about her (maybe its just her inflection when saying 'I' but something grates on me.

Sandra Bezic annoyed me so much last night. :banging: Pet/Tikh is not one of my favorite pairs, but her comments were uncalled for. What did they do to make her hate them so much? Her criticisms weren't neutral- she was ripping them apart and enjoying every minute of it. I do agree with some of her criticisms, but there were other pairs who also screwed up, and she wasn't as snarky with them. I have no problem with her making the criticisms, it's how she made them.

here nyou go again

Last night was the opening telecast of Olympic figure skating, the pair's short program. And the trio in the broadcast booth for NBC was Tom Hammond, Sandra Bezic, and Dick Button.

May I respectfully say to NBC - "What were you thinking of, guys?" Hammond comes across as stiff and completely lacking in personality, Bezic is as opinionated, snobby, and arrogant as ever, and Dick Button looked like the token member of the AARP (American Association of Retired People) who seemed a bit tired and out of his element. As much as I admire Dick Button, perhaps the time has come for him to retire from these types of marathon assignments.

When the camera first panned to this trio, none of them were smiling. It was clear that there wasn't exactly great chemistry among them, and Bezic was hard pressed to smile at the cameras. As usual, she corrected Button once or twice, and he returned the favor. Touche!

IMHO, one of the best trios the American television networks has ever assembled was Verne Lundquist, Tracy Wilson, and Scott Hamilton. This trio obviously liked and respected each other, both professionally and personnaly, and their wonderful chemistry came through in every assignment they undertook. Their enthusiasm, articulate commentary, and "good vibes" made watching and listening to them a pleasure, at least to me.

And now we have two weeks of Hammond/Bezic/Button. Definitely, I'm using the MUTE button!

Excuse me but Dick Button is still the best analyst of figure skating that there is. I applaud nbc for bringing him in. Sandra is opinated. I would have thought you of all people would appreciate that in an analyst since you are so opinated yourself. Do you mean to say you prefer Terry Gannon the talking head who can't keep quite while people are skating? Can't you start a thread this is positive? You seem to thrive on the negative & getting fans upset with one another.

Sandra Bezic annoyed me so much last night. :banging: Pet/Tikh is not one of my favorite pairs, but her comments were uncalled for. What did they do to make her hate them so much? Her criticisms weren't neutral- she was ripping them apart and enjoying every minute of it. I do agree with some of her criticisms, but there were other pairs who also screwed up, and she wasn't as snarky with them. I have no problem with her making the criticisms, it's how she made them.

She was ripping apart all of the Russian pairs b/c she was a mediocre pairs skater herself who never won a darn thing!!!! There I said it! For someone so knowledgable about skating to rip apart Russian pairs who (even she conceded) actually *know* how to skate unlike the Chinese pairs. Heck, almost all the skaters in the competition were better skaters than the Chinese: Dube & Davison, the Germans, I&B etc.

I don't hate the Chinese pairs at all, but when I see coverage that is overly biased for one group and makes them out to be so much better than another, I really start to dislike these skaters even if they have nothing to do with the propaganda.

Excuse me but Dick Button is still the best analyst of figure skating that there is. I applaud nbc for bringing him in. Sandra is opinated. I would have thought you of all people would appreciate that in an analyst since you are so opinated yourself. Do you mean to say you prefer Terry Gannon the talking head who can't keep quite while people are skating? Can't you start a thread this is positive? You seem to thrive on the negative & getting fans upset with one another.

I have always been a fan of Dick Button but IMHO the all-time best Olympic commentating trio was Verne Lundquist, Tracy Wilson, and Scott Hamilton. They had a wonderful chemistry and worked so well together.

As for your comments on my "thriving on the negative & getting fans upset with one another", give me a break. I am not responsible for anybody's reactions but my own. Believe me, I read some posts at Golden Skate that irritate me, but I usually refrain from blasting back at the person who wrote them. On the other hand, I can't believe the reaction to the thread I started on Sasha's reaction to Michelle's withdrawal. Apparently, there are numerous people who share my opinion on the subject, while others, of course, do not.

And as for your comments about my starting some "positive threads", are you serious? Do you have any idea how many threads I have started here?? I suggest that you read some of them. The vast majority of them are positive, believe it or not.